Bible Commentaries
Matthew 11

Verses 1-19

Mat 11:1-19

Section VIII.
Rejection of John and of Jesus, Matthew 11:1-30

J.W. McGarvey

John’s Message from Prison, Matthew 11:1-6.
(Luke 7:18-23)

1. he departed thence.—The probability is that Jesus now labored separately from the apostles for a time—they laboring under the commission just given them, and he remaining with the multitudes who still flocked about him.

2. in the prison.—According to Josephus, the place of John’s imprisonment and death was the castle of Machaerus, east of the Dead Sea. (Ant. B. 18, ch. 5, §§ 1, 2.) It was not very far from that part of the Jordan in which John had baptized; and it is probable that Herod was residing in this castle when he went to hear John’s preaching.

3. Art thou he.—Various hypotheses have been advanced by both ancient and modern expositors in reference to the purpose of John’s inquiry. The natural and obvious supposition that he inquired merely because he wanted to know, has been very generally rejected as inconsistent with his previous testimony for Jesus, and with his inspiration. But we must remember that his inspiration passed away with the ministry on account of which it was bestowed, and that it was only the man John who made the inquiry. Moreover, it was the man John in hopeless imprisonment, and filled with the despondency natural to his situation. He may have still believed all that he had formerly said of Jesus, and yet have made the inquiry in the text. The inquiry is not, Are you what I declared you to be? but, being all of that, are you the one who should come, or must we look for another? Looking, as John did, in common with all the Jews, for an earthly king in the coming Messiah, and seeing in Jesus no aspirations for such a position, he was so far confused as to think that while Jesus fulfilled a part of the promises, there might be another Coming One who would fulfill the remainder. To satisfy his own mind, then, was the object of his inquiry, and he shows unabated confidence in Jesus by submitting the decision of the question to him.

4, 5. Go and show John.—Jesus did not choose to send a categorical answer, although John’s question called for no more than this He preferred to let his works testify for him, and therefore he merely reiterated their testimony by saying, "Go and show John again those things which ye do hear and see." He was engaged in a variety of cures when the messengers arrived. (Luke 7:21.) The answer required John to revert once more to all that the prophets had written about the Coming One, and to thereby determine whether another after Jesus should be expected. It directed his mind especially to Isaiah 61:1-3, a passage to which Jesus had before appealed when preaching in the synagogue at Nazareth. (Luke 4:18-21.)

6. not be offended in me.—The chief reason why the scribes were offended at the claims of Jesus, was because he did not come up to their expectations concerning the Messiah; and now John seemed in danger of falling into the same fatal error: hence the warning to John, "Blessed is he who shall not be offended in me."

True Estimate of John, Matthew 11:7-15.
(Luke 7:24-30)

7, 8. A reed... soft raiment.—A reed shaken by the wind symbolizes a man who is swayed by public opinion; and one clothed in soft raiment, is a man of self-indulgence. The questions of Jesus Drought out with great emphasis the contrast between John and all such characters. In contrast with a reed shaken by the wind, stood his firmness in withstanding the Pharisees, and his fearlessness in rebuking sin even when Herod was the sinner, and when liberty and life were at stake. In contrast with soft raiment stood his camel’s hair coat with its raw hide girdle, and his food of locusts and wild honey. To remind the people of these things, was to rekindle their admiration for John.

9, 10. more than a prophet—More than a prophet, in being the messenger sent before the face of Jesus, and in sustaining a closer relation to Jesus than any other prophet.

11. not risen a greater.—A greater prophet; continuing the comparison between him and the other prophets. If there were any doubt of this, it would be removed by Luke, who, in reporting the same speech, inserts the word prophet after greater. (Luke 7:28.) The point of superiority is that mentioned in the previous verse, his closer connection with Jesus.

greater than he.—The point of comparison is still the same—the superiority consisting in closer connection with Jesus, and greater knowledge of him. In these respects, the least in the kingdom is greater than John, because he is a member of the body of Christ, and this is more than to be the messenger to go before him and to inquire, "Art thou he that should come, or look we for another?"

This remark implies that John was not in the kingdom; for, otherwise, the least in the kingdom could not be greater than he. The language can not be treated as a hyperbole, as when Paul declares himself "less than the least of all saints" (Ephesians 3:8); for the contradiction in terms employed by Paul shows that he speaks hyperbolically; but there is no evidence of hyperbole in the passage before us. Neither can the expression "kingdom of heaven" be construed as equivalent to heaven, for in the next verse it is said to suffer violence, and this language can not be construed as referring to heaven. Neither is the present tense, "He that is least in the kingdom," to be construed as implying that some were already in the kingdom; for, in that case, John himself would have been in it, and the comparison could not have been made. Moreover, it is not uncommon to use the present tense in making comparisons between things yet in the future. (See Matthew 22:30.) The comparison in question is accounted for only by the fact that the kingdom of heaven, though preached, was not yet set up, and therefore John was not a citizen of it.

12. suffereth violence.—The correct translation of this verse is that given by Mr. Green in his Two-fold New Testament: "The kingdom of heaven is being forced, and men of force are seizing on it."

The kingdom of heaven can not be literally forced; therefore, this term is to be understood metaphorically. The kingdom is compared to a walled city, into which men are trying to force their way in order to get possession of it, and this is said to have been going on "since the days of John the Baptist." In order to see what actual conduct of men is thus depicted, we must glance back at the history from the time of John. When the multitudes first rushed out to John at the Jordan, many of them thought that he was the expected Messiah, and they were eager to set up by force the expected kingdom. Disappointed in this, the same "men of force" soon gathered around Jesus, and on the very day in which the news of John’s death reached Galilee, there followed Jesus into the wilderness about five thousand men, who, near the close of the day, tried to "take him by force and make him a king." (Matthew 14:12-21; comp. John 6:15.) It was this disposition to force their way into the misconceived kingdom, which made it necessary for Jesus to frequently avoid the multitudes, and to sometimes command persons whom he had healed, "Tell it to no man." The verse, then, refers to the eager ness of the people to enter by violence into the privileges and honors of the kingdom—a disposition which arose from the mistaken idea that it was to be a political or military kingdom. The kingdom is compared to a walled city, and those men who wished to set up the kingdom by military force, to an army besieging the city.

13. Until John.—The statement that "all the prophets and the law prophesied until John," implies that then there was a change. The change is not stated, but may be supplied from the almost identical sentence in Luke, "The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of heaven is preached." (Luke 16:16.) The change consisted in adding the preaching of the kingdom.

14. this is Elias.—The Jews expected the prophet Elijah to reappear, according to the prediction of Malachi, and they believed his coming would immediately precede the Messiah’s kingdom. (Malachi 4:5-6; comp. Matthew 17:10.) They had at first thought it probable that John was the literal Elijah (John 1:21), but John denied it. Jesus now informs them that John, though not literally Elijah, was the person so called by Malachi; and he does this to show that Malachi’s prediction had been fulfilled, and that consequently, according to their own doctrine, the kingdom of God must be at hand, and what he had just said about the kingdom, should be believed. John was called Elijah, because, as predicted by the angel who announced his birth, he was to go before the Lord "in the spirit and power of Elijah." (Luke 1:17.) He had the spirit of Elijah, in that he exercised similar self-denial in his mode of life, and maintained the same stern opposition against prevalent iniquity; and the power of Elijah, in that he swayed the people by his word, and gained a popular triumph analogous to that which Elijah gained at Mt. Carmel. (1 Kings 18:20-40.)

15. He that hath ears.—Jesus used the proverb contained in this verse when he desired to fix especial attention on something which his hearers were inclined to reject The foregoing speech about John was distasteful to those who had rejected his preaching and baptism; yet it was of the utmost importance to the cause of Jesus that the reputation of John, thus far his chief human witness, should be properly sustained, and the more so, as he was now in prison, and men were likely to think less of him on account of his waning fortune.

Childishness of the Opposition, Matthew 11:16-19.
(Luke 7:31-35)

16-19. like unto children.—In the comparison here instituted, two groups of children are supposed to be at play. One group makes a sound in imitation of a pipe, for the others to dance by, thus imitating the professional dancers; but the others refuse to dance. Supposing, then, that they feel more like weeping, the first group begin to mourn in imitation of the hired mourners at a funeral (see note on Matthew 9:23), but the others will not lament. In like manner, when John came, neither eating bread nor drinking wine, the unbelievers were displeased, and said he had a demon. When Jesus, as if for the very purpose of pleasing them in that wherein John displeased them, came eating and drinking, they were still displeased, and said, Behold a glutton and a wine-bibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. They acted like the ill-tempered children.

justified of her children.—Wisdom is justified by her children when they act as wisdom’s children should, thereby showing that she has trained them wisely. Jesus here assumes that he and John were both children of wisdom, and that they acted wisely though they acted so differently. John’s life of Nazarite abstinence was wisely adapted to the special mission on which he was sent, that of preaching repentance. But Jesus, coming on a mission addressed not to one but to all the aspects of human life, assumed no peculiar personal habits, but preserved that evenness of balance and harmony of attributes which wisdom demanded in the Son of God. Wisdom was thus justified in both of her children; and she is justified in all of her children when they prudently adapt their habits each to the peculiar mission which God by providence assigns him.

Jesus and John the Baptist - Matthew 11:1-19

Open It

1. What causes people to second-guess themselves?

2. Other than Jesus Christ, who, in your opinion, was the greatest person who ever lived? Why?

3. Of everything you know about Christ, what surprises you most?

Explore It

4. What did Jesus do while His disciples were out on their mission trip? (Matthew 11:1)

5. What message or question did John the Baptist send to Christ from prison? (Matthew 11:2-3)

6. What instructions did Jesus give to John’s messenger? (Matthew 11:4)

7. What kind of proof did Jesus offer to establish His claim to be the Messiah? (Matthew 11:5)

8. What things did Jesus say John the Baptist was not? (Matthew 11:7)

9. How did Jesus identify John? (Matthew 11:9-10)

10. What high compliment did Jesus pay John? (Matthew 11:11)

11. Why was John’s life and ministry significant? (Matthew 11:10)

12. What did Jesus claim about the kingdom of heaven? (Matthew 11:12)

13. Whose prophetic role did Jesus say John was fulfilling? (Matthew 11:14)

14. How did Jesus compare His generation to children? (Matthew 11:16-17)

15. What criticism did John the Baptist receive? Why? (Matthew 11:18)

16. What frequent charge was leveled at Jesus? Why? (Matthew 11:19)

Get It

17. If you faithfully lived for God and were thrown in jail, how do you think you might react?

18. Based on this passage, how do you think Jesus reacts when we have moments of weakness and doubts about our faith?

19. How do you personally handle doubts when they come?

20. Why do you believe that Jesus is God’s Son and the Savior of the world?

21. What have you seen and heard about Jesus that you could tell others?

22. If Jesus were physically here today and began talking about you at a press conference, what kinds of remarks would he make?

23. In what ways is the work of God advancing in your life or in your circle of influence?

Apply It

24. What words of comfort could you share this week with a Christian who happens to be dealing with doubt?

25. What specific actions can you take today to strengthen a weak area of faith?

26. What immature attitude or action do you need to change today in order to develop more fully in your faith?

Verses 20-30

Mat 11:20-30

Unbelieving Cities Upbraided, Matthew 11:20-24

J.W. McGarvey

20. most of his mighty works.—The meaning is, that more of his mighty works were done in these cities than in any other cities; not, more than in all others. Notwithstanding this fact, however, we have no record of any miracles at all wrought in either Chorazin or Bethsaida. This shows that comparatively few of the miracles are recorded.

they repented not.—Notwithstanding the admiration of the people in these cities for Jesus, the dominion of sin within them was not broken down; they did not repent, and consequently they were not benefited by their heavenly opportunities. There were doubtless many individual exceptions.

21. Chorazin... Bethsaida.—Chorazin is not mentioned in the Scriptures except in the denunciations of it. Jerome, who traveled in Palestine in the latter part of the second century, represents it as two miles from Capernaum (Alford, Lange). Bethsaida was the home of Peter and Andrew (John 1:44), and was also near Capernaum (Matthew 8:14). No trace of these villages is now seen by the traveler.

in Tyre and Sidon.—We are not to infer that these two were the wickedest Gentile cities in the world; but they are mentioned because they were near by, and their wickedness was well known to the Galileans.

would have repented.—Jesus here assumes that miracles, when rightly regarded, lead to repentance. Their power is not inherent, but depends on the proposition demonstrated by them. As Jesus preached repentance, his miracles demonstrated his divine authority to demand it, and the impenitence of his hearers proved them to be perverse and obdurate. High privileges abused render men more and more obdurate. The Galileans had abused their former privileges, and now they were not so susceptible to good influences as their Gentile neighbors, who had never known the will of God. The same difference is still seen between communities, and between individuals of the same community. When the proper time came for evangelizing the Gentiles, Tyre and Sidon both received the gospel, and verified the words of the text. (See Acts 21:3-6; Acts 27:3.)

in sackcloth and ashes.—Not that they would literally have put on sackcloth and set down in the ashes, which was the ancient custom in times of great affliction (Job 2:12; Jonah 3:6), but that their repentance would have been attended with extreme sorrow, such as often found expression in this way.

22. more tolerable.—The cities of Tyre and Sidon, if judged by their actions alone, were far more wicked than these Galilean cities; but, bad as they were, they were better in proportion to their opportunities, and therefore they deserved less severity of punishment. The relative merits of men are to be determined by the correspondence between their lives and their opportunities.

23. shalt come down to hell.—Not hell (γεέννα), but hades (ᾁδης). Not the final abode of the wicked, but the disembodied state. On account of the suffering which wicked spirits endure there (see Luke 16:25), when hades is mentioned in connection with the wicked, the idea of punishment is conveyed. The expressions, "exalted to heaven," and "brought down to hades," are both used figuratively; the former, to denote the high privileges which Capernaum had enjoyed, and the latter, the ruin which awaited her. The prediction has long since been fulfilled, and the traveler now searches among the rank weeds on the lake shore to find, in the fragments of stone which lie there, uncertain vestiges of the once populous and well built city.

Woe on Unrepentant Cities - Matthew 11:20-24

Open It

1. What are the pros and cons of living in a big city?

2. What city would you most like to visit? Why?

3. What is your favorite city in the world? Why?

4. How effective do you feel large evangelistic crusades are?

Explore It

5. After His praise of John, what did Jesus begin to do? (Matthew 11:20)

6. Who was Jesus condemning? (Matthew 11:20)

7. Why was Jesus denouncing the cities in which He performed most of His miracles? (Matthew 11:20)

8. What two cities did Jesus condemn first? Why? (Matthew 11:21)

9. How did Jesus say Korazin and Bethsaida were different from Tyre and Sidon? (Matthew 11:21)

10. What did Jesus say would happen on the day of judgment? (Matthew 11:22)

11. What city did Jesus single out for comparison with Sodom? (Matthew 11:23)

12. What did Jesus predict for Capernaum? (Matthew 11:23)

13. Why did Capernaum have a bleak future? (Matthew 11:23)

14. To what ancient, evil city did Jesus compare Capernaum? Why? (Matthew 11:23-24)

15. What city did Jesus say would face the sterner judgment than Sodom? Why? (Matthew 11:24)

Get It

16. How do you think God views our country’s evil bent—especially in light of all the ways He has blessed us?

17. As people who have experienced the goodness of God, how should we be living?

18. In what ways are you treating the mercies of God or his blessings in your life as no big deal?

19. Why is it dangerous for us to know the truth about God and yet continue to sin?

20. What would Jesus say if He came and preached in our city today?

21. Why do you think we sometimes become indifferent toward God?

Apply It

22. What specific sin do you need to repent of today?

23. What are three things you could do this week to be a brighter light for Christ in your city or town?

24. In light of the certain judgment of God, what step could you take this week to reach a lost neighbor or friend?

Thanksgiving of Jesus, Matthew 11:25-26

25. I thank thee.—After ex pressing himself so fully in regard to those who rejected him, Jesus now, by a natural transition, proceeds to speak of those who received him. That he renders thanks for the result, shows that he was not displeased with it. On the contrary, it was an actual cause of rejoicing to him that he was received by those whom he calls "babes," and rejected by "the wise and prudent." God had "hid these things" from the latter class through the natural operation of their own corrupted hearts and perverted minds (comp. notes on Matthew 13:14-15; Mark 4:12), and he had revealed them to the former through their more teachable moral and mental condition; the same light, meanwhile, shining on both alike. The ground of rejoicing is not stated, but we can see at least two considerations which were probably included in it. First, those called "the wise and prudent"—the educated Jews—were so wedded to tradition and false theories that the truth would not have been so safe in their keeping as in that of men fresh from the masses of the people. It is certain that the chief corrupters of the truth in every age have sprung from the former class of men. Second, the fact that the gospel was originally established in the earth chiefly by the labors of the poor and the illiterate, in the face of bitter opposition from the rich and powerful, is an overwhelming argument in its favor; but this argument would stand reversed, if it had been the "wise and prudent" instead of "babes" who at first received it. The anticipation of this result may have contributed to the Savior’s rejoicing.

26. for so it seemed good.—Instead of for, we should have that. The entire verse is an abbreviated repetition of the thanksgiving, and is introduced for the sake of emphasis. It should be rendered thus: "Even so, Father, that so it seemed good in thy sight", "I thank thee" is understood after Father. (For a different opinion, see Lange on this verse.)

Invitation, Matthew 11:27-30

27. All things are delivered.—Jesus here speaks by anticipation. In God’s purpose, all things were already delivered to him, but they were not actually delivered until his glorification. (See note on Matthew 28:18.)

no man knoweth.—That is, knoweth completely. No one but the Father thus knew the Son at that time; nor, indeed, does any so know him even at this time. And no one thus knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son will reveal him. This revealing is done partly in this world and partly in the world to come. The assertion makes it certain that no correct knowledge of Clod can be obtained except through revelation.

28. Come unto me.—The preceding remarks are prefatory to this invitation. The dominion which he exercises, and the knowledge which he can impart, justify him in inviting men to come to him.

labor... rest.—The labor and the rest here spoken of are those which affect the soul (Matthew 11:29); the labor and the heavy burden which sin imposes, the rest which follows the forgiveness of sins. Physical burdens are also made lighter by coming to Jesus, because the soul is made stronger to bear them.

29, 30. meek and lowly.—That Jesus is meek and lowly in heart, assures the invited that no grievous exactions will be made of them; and that his yoke is easy, and his burden light, is a good reason why the heavily laden should come. The tenderness and beauty of this invitation are the admiration of the world.

Argument of Section 8

By the speech of Jesus, which constitutes the body of this section, Matthew proves that the Jews were both inconsistent and inexcusable when they rejected John and Jesus. Inconsistent, because they condemned each for not living as the other did; and inexcusable, because they disregarded evidence which would have convinced the wickedest cities in the world. There is also a dignity and grandeur in the authoritative sentence which Jesus pronounces on the impenitent cities; in his lofty assertion of divine power and knowledge; and in his benevolent invitation for all who are weary and heavy laden to come to him, which are in perfect keeping with his claim to be the Son of God. These sentiments impress the soul as being truthful and pertinent utterances from a being full of divine power and goodness, whereas in any created being they would appear the extreme of arrogance and pretentiousness. They could not have originated in a false and deceitful spirit, such as the spirit of Jesus must have been if he was not the Son of God. It is internal evidence such as this that enables the Bible to furnish in itself the proof that it came from God.

Rest for the Weary - Matthew 11:25-30

Open It

1. If you had one week of vacation in which to recharge your physical and emotional batteries, where would you go to rest, relax, and get rejuvenated?

2. What sorts of activities absolutely drain the life out of you?

3. Why are many Christians frazzled and burned out?

Explore It

4. After pronouncing woe on several unrepentant cities, what did Jesus do? (Matthew 11:25)

5. When did Jesus pray? (Matthew 11:25)

6. How did Jesus address God? (Matthew 11:25)

7. Why did Jesus say He was praising God? (Matthew 11:25)

8. What did Jesus say God had entrusted or committed to Him? (Matthew 11:27)

9. Who alone did Jesus say knew Him? (Matthew 11:27)

10. Besides himself, who did Jesus say could know God? (Matthew 11:27)

11. Who claimed to reveal God to the world? (Mat 1:27)

12. What general invitation did Christ make at this time? (Matthew 11:28)

13. What kind of people was Jesus addressing? (Matthew 11:28)

14. What promise did Jesus make to those who would accept His offer? (Matthew 11:28)

15. What farming imagery did Jesus use to encourage people to come to Him? (Matthew 11:29)

16. How did Jesus describe Himself? (Matthew 11:29)

17. How is walking with Christ described? (Matthew 11:30)

Get It

18. In your eyes, what about Christ seems so obvious that everyone ought to be able to see it?

19. Why do you think God hides certain truths from "the wise"?

20. In what ways do you feel weary and burdened right now?

21. What aspects of the Christian life do you find especially taxing or burdensome?

22. What is it like to experience the promised "rest" of Christ?

23.How would you describe your walk with Christ right now?

Apply It

24. What are two specific ways you can work with Christ tomorrow instead of going in your own direction?

25. Besides praying, what are some ways you can get to know your Father in heaven more intimately this week?

26. What burdens will you entrust to Christ today?